1 . While socializing comes naturally for some, it can be a struggle for others. Shyness is a normal, common personality trait (特征).
Get Excited About A New Adventure
You may have been shy most of your life.
Pay Attention To Your Words
Practice Mindfulness (正念)
Mindfulness involves drawing your attention to the present and being aware of your thoughts, feelings, and surroundings.
Take Small Steps
Getting started can be the hardest part of learning how to be more social for those who are shy.
A.If so, that’s a part of you that you’re used to |
B.Sometimes the best path toward addressing a fear is exposure |
C.Mindfulness can help reduce symptoms of social anxiety disorder |
D.Taking time to tend to your appearance can make a big difference |
E.How we communicate and characterize ourselves can be powerful |
F.However, shyness can make it hard for people to connect with others and achieve their goals |
G.But engaging with people doesn’t have to be practiced as an important work presentation |
2 . Many would consider emotions to be a barrier to decision-making and, therefore, think that they would be better off without them. However, the latest research has proved that our emotions will drive the conclusions we make, and that our well-being may depend upon our ability to understand and interpret them.
Start by understanding your emotions.
Emotions can act as a compass (指南针), pointing you toward what matters most to you. However, strong emotions can affect our judgment and make it challenging to think objectively and critically.
It’s beneficial to expand your viewpoint. When you see the big picture and are focused on your highest purpose, you are not distracted by smaller issues. Figuring out your deepest long-term goals and pursuing them will channel your emotions toward peace and harmony.
To sum up, emotions play a significant role in decision-making and, when used properly, they can improve the effectiveness of the decision-making process.
A.Emotions can provide valuable insights. |
B.All this information can serve your goal in the long run. |
C.You’ll recognize that a decision driven by your values is the best. |
D.Actually, we can effectively use emotions for successful decision-making. |
E.Take a moment to recognize how you are feeling and why you are feeling so. |
F.Therefore, it is essential to balance emotional insights with logical reasoning. |
G.You should try to understand how critical thinking contributes to great decisions. |
3 . Do you think you need to shout at yourself to force yourself to finish your homework? If so, think again.
Self-compassion is the practice of being kind and supportive to ourselves. The opposite is being self-critical and mean to ourselves when we make a mistake.
A 2017 study found people who practice self-compassion tend to handle stress better. Their bodies have less of a stress response when, for example, they meet with difficulties at work or school.
With practice, we can learn to treat ourselves with kindness and unconditional love — not tough love.
A.So how do we develop self-compassion? |
B.It may be more effective to be kind to yourself. |
C.It includes letting go of your strict self-criticism. |
D.Mindfulness is the key to practicing self-compassion. |
E.But this approach does not make us feel or perform better. |
F.They have more confidence to look for areas where they can improve. |
G.Also, show ourselves kindness in ways that nourish (滋养) our spirit and body. |
4 . John is a barber, running a very successful business. He has a large group of regulars, some of whom enjoy a daily shave in his shop, while others just come for the occasional haircut. They keep coming because John loves to laugh, and 30 minutes spent in his shop is a medicine that cheers everyone up. His loud, booming laugh is a trademark around his town.
But John wasn’t always a barrel of laughs. In his teens and early adulthood, he suffered from depression. He often had a long face and found it hard to even smile. It was his neighbor, Mrs. Lee, who was a psychologist, that helped him out. She showed him funny videos or read light-hearted books for him, guided him to focus on things he was grateful for, rather than on things that had been bothering him. Following her advice, he forced himself to laugh as wild as possible, even if it felt fake (假的). To his surprise, after a while, he turned his life around, and real laughter came back into his life again.
Researchers say that we’re all born with the ability to laugh and that finding more ways to bring laughter into our lives does not have to be complicated. In fact, the best advice they offer is “Fake it till you make it.” If you focus on finding ways to laugh and enjoy life and try to smile and laugh even when not feeling like it, you can genuinely change your mood and laugh happily.
John also says we shouldn’t hold back our urge to laugh, even at silly things. Next time you see a funny advertisement on television, making you laugh inside, focus on letting out that laughter. Laughter can be contagious, so you may help others around you, too.
1. Why do John’s regular customers keep coming to his shop?A.Because he is a successful barber. |
B.Because they want to buy a medicine. |
C.Because his laughing can lift their spirits. |
D.Because he can offer them best shave and haircut. |
A.Himself. | B.Researchers. | C.His neighbor. | D.His customers. |
A.It is difficult to find ways to laugh. |
B.Laughter can be faked and finally become real. |
C.The ability to laugh should be developed after birth. |
D.We can watch funny videos or read light-hearted books. |
A.spread | B.heard | C.free | D.available |
5 . Humans are emotional beings who experience all kinds of emotions. Living a joyful life doesn’t mean refusing painful emotions. Instead, it means developing a mindset (心态) that prefers a positive view of the world. At the same time, it means developing healthy ways to deal with difficult emotions.
Joy strengthens relationships. When you have a positive attitude, you tend to approach the people in your life from a place of gratitude and love.
Joy improves physical health.
Joy creates more joy! When you surround yourself with positive people, you experience more happiness in your own life.
A.Joy promotes creativity. |
B.Joy makes you more productive. |
C.This helps others feel more valued. |
D.In recent years, science continues to prove this. |
E.Research shows that happiness spreads in social groups. |
F.Here are some reasons why joy is a powerful life choice. |
G.When you live joyfully, you may create better results in life. |
6 . Tips for you to overcome comparison
Identify your triggers (诱因) and avoid them. To stop comparing yourself to others, pay attention to the people or events that cause your behavior. Do you feel discontent with your life after looking at luxury goods?
Keep a gratitude journal. To start journaling, reflect on the little things that bring you joy and write down why you’re grateful for them. Keeping a gratitude journal can increase your chances of overcoming comparison, but you may forget about it if you have a busy schedule.
Work on improving your abilities. Instead of focusing on your “weaknesses”, reflect on the areas you can improve.
Appreciate others instead of envying them.
A.Write down your positive qualities. |
B.Do you set goals to achieve your dream? |
C.Consider the advantage that others can bring you. |
D.Recognize everyone’s circumstances are entirely unique. |
E.Take classes or workshops to develop your skills and techniques. |
F.Is there someone who constantly makes you feel bad about yourself? |
G.Set a reminder to write at least once a week so you can actively express appreciation. |
7 . Being highly critical or talking down to yourself are examples of self-criticism that highlight your own weaknesses. You may feel you don’t meet your own personal standards or expectations. Fortunately, you can improve this pattern of self-criticism by changing your thought patterns and practicing positive affirmations (情感上的支持或鼓励).
●What is self-criticism?
Self-criticism is the act of thinking negatively about yourself. Individuals with self-critical tendencies face self-created problems due to their tough standards and internalized social values for self-evaluation.
● Can self-criticism be good?
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People with avoidant (回避反应的) attachment styles avoid closeness. This may prevent them from developing relationships for how to show compassion (同情) for themselves and others. Self-criticism is also likely to arise from shame, insecure attachments, and having low self-esteem.
● Examples of self-Criticism
When individuals engage in negative self-assessment, they create an inner dialogue that uses demeaning (贬低的) and demotivating language.
● How can self-criticism be overcome?
To overcome self-criticism, it’s helpful to be honest with yourself about the role you play. You can start to identify how your self-criticism impacts your mood and daily routine.
A.Self-criticism isn’t always bad. |
B.Where does self-criticism come from? |
C.If so, please step outside your comfort zone. |
D.Self-criticism is associated with little progress. |
E.It’s also important to seek professional help as needed. |
F.Examples of self-criticism include phrases and negative self-talk. |
G.As a result, they’re unsure of their thoughts, feelings, and emotions. |
8 . How to Live a Fulfilling Life
How awesome would it be to get out of bed each morning feeling purposeful and happy about your day? What about going to sleep each night with a grin(露齿的笑)of satisfaction on your lips?
To lead a more fulfilling life, you first need to know what part of your current life is troubling or unsatisfactory. Reflect on different aspects of your life to figure out which are upsetting you the most. Try closing your eyes and questioning “What part of my life dissatisfies me the most?” Whatever comes to mind first is probably where you’ll want to start.
● Building good habits.One of the best ways to build good habits that support a fulfilling life is by doing something each day that challenges you. Identify one thing you can take action on that pushes you beyond your comfort zone and do it. This might be sharing ideas with your boss when you typically stay quiet.
A.Addressing your dissatisfaction. |
B.Learning to avoid dissatisfaction. |
C.It’s important to set aside “me” time. |
D.End each day by reflecting on your daily challenge. |
E.Replacing your bad habits with good ones is also suggested. |
F.That way, it will be just like any other task on your to-do list. |
G.This may seem difficult, but leading a more fulfilling life is entirely possible. |
9 . Emotions help you communicate and connect with others, and they drive your behaviors or decisions in everyday life as well. However, not all emotions are positive or easy to deal with.
The first “S” goes for self-awareness.
The second “S” is self-acceptance. This is often linked to greater well-being, while the experiential avoidance of emotions is linked to more negative emotions and symptoms of depression.
The third skill comes from self-compassion(自我同情). It is crucial to use this when things just don’t go well.
A.The last one is about setting boundaries. |
B.The fourth one refers to personal forgiveness. |
C.Remember to practise some self-care activities. |
D.Especially, mixed emotions can be challenging to manage. |
E.Accepting emotions never means you have to like bad ones. |
F.It is the key to fully understanding your own emotions and others’. |
G.Self-acceptance means tolerating all emotions, healthy or unhealthy. |
10 . A Way Out of Social Anxiety: Volunteering and Acts of Kindness
As a socially anxious introvert, I can attest(证明)to the benefits of serving others through volunteering in my community.
A volunteer job doesn’t need to require stepping into a busy room full of 100 people at a school or hospital.
Social scientists have an apt name for stressful social situations where we need to perform and would likely be judged or evaluated. The “social-evaluative threat” is particularly threatening for people with social anxiety as stress hormones rapidly increase. Any time we are in evaluative situations where we are judged by others, we face this social-evaluative threat and endure a sudden rush of stress hormones that increase anxiety.
“Kindness may help socially anxious people,” says Dr. Lynn Alden, a psychology professor at the University of British Columbia.
A.Some people are naturally reserved while others are rather outgoing. |
B.In social anxiety disorder, fear and anxiety lead to avoidance which can disrupt our life. |
C.Indeed, my own act of kindness has always been a sure bet to bring me out of my shell. |
D.Instead, my volunteer service consists of quiet one-on-one visits with isolated older adults. |
E.When I am giving my free time to help others, I feel truly liberated in my mission to serve. |
F.High-performance events such as public speaking or job interviews can be really unbearable. |
G.She and her colleagues conducted a study with 115 undergraduate students who had reported high levels of social anxiety. |